Johnnie St. Vrain: Longmont's return envelope is wasted, but it saves money

Longmont Times-Call

Posted:
07/14/2013 05:07:23 PM MDT

Updated:
07/14/2013 05:08:57 PM MDT

Dear Mr. St. Vrain: I have my city of Longmont utility bill paid automatically. They deduct each month's bill directly from my checking account. It has worked extremely well for two years now. They send me a statement each month showing the amount that was paid.

They also continue to include a return envelope. Since I no longer have a need for the envelope, I discard it. Don't you think there would be some savings for the city if they discontinued sending me and many others these blank envelopes? -- Envelope Collector/Discarder

Dear Envelope Collector/Discarder: I would have thought that, until I spoke with utility billing manager Melva Douglas, who has taken this question from other customers.

It's less expensive for the city to insert return address envelopes with all paper statements than to remove them.

"The price of that return envelope, compared to the price of the programming (to pull all of those out) ... there's no comparison," she told.

Here's why.

Four times a month, the utility department prints paper statements for customers. (The city is divided roughly into quadrants, each receiving statements at a different time.)

"We use an inserter-folder machine. The bill comes down and folds in the feeder, which shoots that out. The City Line and fridge card goes in there, the return envelope goes in there, then it's shoved into the outer envelope," Douglas said.

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For your bill to be sent without that return envelope, it would have to be handled separately from all of the other bills.

Right now, there are not enough wasted return envelopes out there to make it worth reprogramming or retooling the city's billing system.

Further, having bills move through the system out of order would cost the city more in postage. As it is now, the city delivers its stack of statements, all in ZIP Code order (80501, 80502, etc.). Those envelopes then are moved through the post office's sorting equipment. Keeping this system simplified for the Postal Service saves the city 11 cents per envelope -- 35 cents rather than 46 cents.

"Her best bet is to go paperless," Douglas said of your situation.

You are not considered to be paperless yet. To become paperless, go to ci.longmont.co.us/utility_billing and click on the "Paperless Billing" link. Currently, about 10 percent of the city's utility customers are paperless.

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